Goa bomb blast: NIA quizzes Sanatan Sanstha chief

Panaji: Almost six months after the Goa
bomb blast, National Investigation Agency (NIA) questioned
the chief of the right-wing group linked to the explosion in
which two persons were killed, and also raided his ashram.

Jayant Athavale, chief of Sanatan Sanstha, was quizzed
yesterday by sleuths of the Central agency at his residence in
Ramnathi Ashram, 30km from here.

Sources said the NIA team was accompanied by Dhananjay
Ashtekar, one of the four accused arrested in the case.
Sanstha`s Managing Trustee Virendra Marathe was also quizzed.

The agency personnel also raided the ashram and seized
a few items, including CDs. The ashram`s server was checked by
computer experts, who accompanied the team during the raid on
Saturday, they said.

The Sanstha came under police scanner after the blast
in Margao on October 16, 2009. Investigations led to the
arrest of four persons, all owing allegiance to the outfit.

Police had claimed to have dug out a conspiracy to
execute serial bomb blasts in the state. The investigation was
handed over to NIA as the conspiracy was spread across two
other states - Maharashtra and Karnataka.